Dead Men Can't Dance
by Numb Smile
Summary: AU. Basically, Ashley likes Spencer.
1. Chapter 1

**Title**: _"Dead Men Can't Dance**"**_

**Disclaimer**: All I have is a sore throat – you can have it if you really want – as for South of Nowhere all the rights belong to Tom Lynch and The-N.

**Rating**: PG

**Summary**: Basically, Ashley likes Spencer. The fic is drivel and the summary is rubbish, but I don't know what else to say – oh and I've had the words "Dead men can't dance" going round in my brain for months and I just wanted to writing something and title it that. Meh.

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She sat down under the shade of an old oak tree – a tree that couldn't have looked more out of place at a Los Angeles high school if it had tried. The grand tree masked the suns blinding rays beautifully, so well in fact that the brunette no longer had to squint to see across the quad.

Normally the brunette would rather not have to look at anyone who breathed in the same smoggy air as her – especially not at school – but when it came down to a certain girl, the brunette couldn't look away. Everything about the girl captivated her. From the golden brown tresses that framed her face, to her small stature, to her crystal blue eyes – that the brunette noted would occasionally storm over – and even down to the way she would bite her lip when she was in deep thought. Not many people would have noticed her tendency to chew on her lower lip – whether it was due to deep contemplation or not – though, but Ashley had spent so much time watching the blonde, she knew almost all of the taller girls quirks and mannerisms. She knew so much about the blonde; it was bordering on stalking. Ashley couldn't help herself though; she was addicted to Spencer.

That was her name, Spencer Carlin, no middle names. Just plain and simple Spencer, although in Ashley's opinion, Spencer was anything but plain and simple. She radiated purity and innocence – a rarity in the _city of angels_. Her smile could melt even the blackest and coldest of hearts the Californian sun had ever seen – Ashley felt as if she were testament to that.

As the brunette continued in her newest favourite pastime – _Spencer watching_ – she thought back to their first meeting.

She was already having a bad day, and she hadn't even gotten to her first class yet – which she was already late for – and as she wrestled with her locker, the blonde had appeared behind her asking for directions. Ashley, in her usual manner, had snapped at the innocent girl, and after biting her head off, she had walked away towards her next lesson – leaving the new student still clueless as to where she had to be. Ashley had felt guilty for the way she had treated Spencer, which in itself was strange as Ashley frequently snapped at people – and usually felt indifferent about her behaviour. But there was something about the girl she had chewed out that forced a sense of guilt and remorse to rise in the taller girls' stomach.

Ashley Davies didn't apologise. She could remember ever having apologised for anything – except for when she was six and spilt a glass of orange juice over some of her dad's sheet music. But there was something about Spencer that made Ashley want to seek her out and beg for her forgiveness. There was something about Spencer that made the stonewalls around Ashley's heart start to crumble.

She didn't apologise though. She wanted to, but, she didn't – and not just because it wasn't in her nature to.

Her only interaction with the youngest Carlin had been under a minute – but yet the blonde still managed to monopolize her thoughts.

Ashley knew that her fixation was bordering on obsession. She didn't care though. She had nothing better to do with her time at school. Somewhere in her mind, Ashley thought that Spencer must have known. Even though she never outright _stared_ at her, Ashley's eyes were always on the taller girl. She knew Spencer was naive and even a little dense, but the blonde definitely wasn't stupid. She must have been able to feel the brunette's gaze on her. She must have.

The bell signalling the start of afternoon lessons rang out over the school grounds snapping Ashley out of her catatonic like state of Spencer watching. The brunette groaned, _stupid lessons_, the blonde who enthralled her thoughts was already gathering up her books and heading off. The shorter girl sighed, tomorrow would be the day that she got the courage up to go and talk to the blonde. Tomorrow. Tomorrow would be the day. But she knew, just like dead men can't dance, tomorrow would never come.


	2. Chapter 2

Sorry it's taken me so long to update and thanks for all the feedback.  
A/N: I started writing this chapter, but half way through I got into a conversation with my best mate that lasted over two hours - making me completely forget about this fic. So if it doesn't read right, blame her.

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The blonde relaxed her grip on her books, letting them drop onto the vacant lunch table, mutely muttering about her distaste for _conjugating French verbs_. Her body flopped down onto the bench attached to the table, her back to the school.

Spencer let her slender fingers graze over her textbooks, her loathing of the subject stopping her from actually opening the bound paper. She hated the subject but was expected to take it, just like she was expected to get good grades and go to a good reputable university. She internally rolled her crystal blue eyes, her mother had already mapped out her life, and the blonde had almost no say in what actually happened to her. From the subjects she took, to her extracurricular activities to who her friends were.

The subjects were ones she didn't enjoy, the extracurricular activities involved the worst people in school and as for friends, well there were those Spencer's mother thought she should "hang around with" and then there were those who wernt as good at bullshitting adults. Madison fell into the first category. And she was just about the bitchiest, most superficial, heartless…well lets just say she wasn't someone Spencer would want as a friend. Seeing as almost no one in Los Angeles had the time of day for the blonde, Spencer was left with no friends. She barely even minded, sure it was lonely, but all the blonde wanted to do was get through her final years of high school, get away from her mother and come to life at university.

A university _she_ picked.

But as for her present – her friendless present – Spencer was happy just to keep her head down and try to silently work through any issues that came up in her head. And the issues were coming up thick and fast. Predominantly the issue of sexuality, sexuality and a certain cold tempered brunette.

Everyone she had come into contact with during her short time in La-La Land had told her to stay as far away from Ashley as possible – with Madison commenting that Spencer should "_stay away from that lesbian freak of nature_" and the odd impromptu comment about "_wandering dyke eyes_". And after her only run-in with the brunette, Spencer thought that it was best to stay away, if for nothing more than fear of another verbal lashing.

But that didn't stop Spencer from thinking about Ashley.

Considering Spencer didn't occupy herself with social interactions, she had plenty of time to think, and Ashley was usually the subject of her thoughts.

From questions of why Ashley was as abrupt and distant as she was, to contemplations of what the brunette's laugh sounded like, to general musings of the shorter girl's beauty.

Spencer let out a soft sigh and opened her books, getting comfortable for a lunchtime of French. She was already bored and she hadn't even started yet. Her eyes scanned over the first line of the chapter, her shoulders slumping in defeat.

All thoughts of ennui left her mind as she felt a familiar set of eyes on her. She didn't have to look up to know who was looking at her. It was Ashley. It was _always_ Ashley. Wherever Spencer was, the brunette's gaze always seemed to be locked on her.

The blonde knew she should be worried, or annoyed or uncomfortable but she wasn't. She wasn't even confused by the unsolicited attention, nor did she mind it. Quite the opposite in fact, she loved the feeling of someone devoting that much attention to her – especially an enigma like Ashley Davies – not to mention how safe and protected it made her feel. And then there were the butterflies that always seemed to swarm in her stomach when she felt those chocolate coloured pools locking onto her, the brunette's stare making her shiver internally.

Spencer thought back to the first time she had caught Ashley looking at her.

She was going through a list of topics that she needed to catch-up on, that her physics teacher had given her. She couldn't seem to will her eyes past the words "_Waves – Sound and Radio_", when she felt someone looking at her. Her pulse began to quicken as her eyes darted around the nearly empty library, stopping when they fell on a recognizable brunette. She was sat two tables up from Spencer. Their stares only locked for a millisecond before Ashley's eyes shot down to the open books in front of her.

Although it had only been for a nanosecond Spencer felt as if Ashley had just seen directly into her open soul. She felt naked and oddly cold.

After than Spencer would constantly feel the same pair of eyes on her, but she never dared look at the brunette. She didn't want to loose the silent warmth and comfort that Ashley's stare generated.

Spencer softly started to chew on her lower lip, the French words not fully penetrating her brain, and she thought for a second that she felt Ashley smile.


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks for all the nutritional goodness that is feedback! Sorry for the delay - I suddenly developed a social life, then got ill (and still am grr!).  
Anyway, I knew that is fic wouldn't last long and I've been trying to find a way of ending it in a way that I'm happy with. And although I'm happy with them general theme of this (final) chapter - but as for the length, uh, yeah - I'm not happy with the chapter itself. Meh.  
Oh and the three bits of Ashley's streaming thought are in italics.

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The teacher continued to drone on about this that and the other, her particular brand of "_blah_" pertaining to English Literature. Ashley was struggling to remember why she took English Lit' in the first place – she spoke English surely that was enough, and she didn't need to be able to analyse poetry.

Sighing the brunette shook her head trying to concentrate on the monotonous drone of the student teacher, "because I'm new, blah, blah, alphabetical order, blah, blah, so would you please re-seat yourself accordingly, blah." Ashley suppressed a grunt of aggravation, not liking the idea of sitting next to a prissy cheerbitch or a dumb jock. She specifically chose a seat in the corner where she wouldn't be forced to sit next to anyone.

The whole class groaned as they gathered their books up and shuffled around the room, listening to the teacher instruct them on where they should be sitting and who they should be sitting next to. Ashley's eyes scanned over the noisy room trying to ascertain whom she would be placed next to, she soon gave up guessing – as she really didn't pay attention to anyone's surname – and let her gaze rest on a certain blonde. English Lit was the only class they shared and Ashley was thankful for it, as it gave her more time to Spencer-watch.

Ashley watched as Spencer furrowed her brow and whipped her head round – and once more before she was caught, Ashley averted her stare; zeroing in on her shoes, a small triumphant smile gracing her face, at not being caught gawping – _oh yeah, I'm good_.

"Spencer, you're partnered with Ashley, Kevin you're partnered with…" The rest of the teacher's direction was lost on Ashley, the words not reaching her ears. Spencer was already sitting in her seat and motioning for Ashley to join her, the brunette was sure she had felt her pulse rate pick up when the taller girl had smiled her over.

Her eyes fixed back on her shoes as she shuffled forward, agonizingly slowly, trying to keep the grin from her face.

All the background noise seemed to disperse as Ashley listened to Spencer, her eyes watching pink lips wrap themselves around each syllable, her ears fine tuned on **Radio Spencer **(_102.7fm_).

"This assignment looks like fun, eh?" – _Assignment, huh? They had an assignment to do? How much of the teachers annoying din had she blocked out?_

Spencer continued to smile at her, her azure eyes falling to the sheet of paper central on their shared desk, Ashley's eyes fell too, scanning over the crisp white leaf of A4. "**Work in two's, yada-yada…Due in March 17th, yada-yada…40 of final grade, yada-yada**." That gave them over three months of work; over three months of working **together**. Ashley suddenly had a new found love for her new English Lit teacher.

The brunette nodded slowly, silently showing that she was listening to the blonde.

Spencer continued to smile at the brunette, "I guess we'll be seeing a lot more of each other." – _Maybe dead men can dance after all_.

The End.


End file.
